Stupid human trick

I did a stupid human trick this week. For months, I planned to meet up with one of my internet friends. We're part of a small, close knit group of about a dozen that is part of a large group in the upper thousands.

She's had a rough year (I can relate) and decided to take a Disney cruise. Sweet-we can meet at Port Canaveral. So we planned for a few months that we'd hang out for an hour or so. It'd be worth the two odd hour drive to meet face to face after the countless IMs and several phone calls.

Wednesday night, I went and got goodies for her and her daughter. Sand pails to use at Castaway Cay. Some Barnie's coffee, because hey, if it can get me to drink coffee, ya gotta try it. Florida flip flop keychains, Disney flip flops and some snacks.

Thursday dawns with blue skies and poofy clouds-perfect cruise weather. I hop in the car and head east. I pass by Orlando International Airport (MCO) about 20 minutes after her flight lands. I call her cell phone and it rings 4 times and goes to voice mail. Okay, no biggie. For the first time, I am heading east past the airport-there's a whole lot of nothing going on. Apparently, we've got a nuclear power plant between MCO and the coast-passed that, too.

The closer I get to the port, the more DCL charter buses I see. The newer ones have portholes for windows-cute. The thought passes my mind that friend and her daughter *might* be on one of the buses I'm passing.

When I cross over I95, I know I'm close. Then I'm over the Indian River bridge and I can smell the ocean. Then I see it-the ship that has been torturing me for many years. Someday, when I win the lottery, I'll get my turn. It's yet again one of those Disney things that some people don't understand. The ship is more impressive when you see it in person. The picture above gives you a scope of its size.

I turn off at Cruise terminal A and soon I'm passing right behind the stern of the ship. I come up on the day parking, where I'm stopped by a Cast Member. He delivers crushing news-I won't be allowed in the terminal if I'm not sailing. Oh noooooo. Can I at least meet up with my party? He tells me yes, if they come out of the building. I'm directed to day parking.

Okay, I park the car and call her cell phone. Four rings again. This means her phone is on, but is not being answered. Uh oh. Her 18 year old son, the source of all her worries this year, has been known to pilfer mom's cell phone. Is this one of those times? Is her phone back in Rhode Island?

I go up to the gate where a cast member checks IDs against the manifest. I wait in line, hoping that my request isn't too extreme. It's my turn-I ask if I can have someone who is sailing paged, as I didn't know we couldn't meet in the terminal. The cast member radios to her manager and I wait while she assists others. A few minutes later, the answer comes back-if we have a stateroom number, they'll call the stateroom. Otherwise, they won't do it.

Do I have the stateroom number? Nope, sure don't. My trip to the other side of the state was for naught.

We had talked of meeting at MCO on Sunday since they debark the ship around 9am and her flight doesn't leave for home until 1:10pm. However, no plans were made for meeting at MCO and after a 300 mile round trip on Thursday, I'm a little skittish about driving 150 miles round trip to have the same thing happen again.

So, that's my stupid human trick. I don't do them very often, but when I do, it's a big one.

Sorry, Paula, I'm an idiot. This just means you have to come back to Florida for us to meet.